Release date: 30/08/2022

Today the second part of the KWPN Young Horse Championships/Blom Cup was held and the four-year-olds came into action for the first time in the sand arena at Tops International Arena.

Six-year-olds
On the sand arena the six year olds completed the second part of the semi final. Almost half of them stayed clear, including three KWPN-approved stallions.
Yesterday 56 combinations managed to keep clear in the first part of the semi-final, today 45 pairs managed to do so. The best 40 combinations of both days will start in the finals tomorrow, the rest can compete in the small finals.
Among the double jumpers are the KWPN-approved stallions Lambada Shake AG (Aganix du Seigneur by Grappa AG of Spartacus, breeder Alex Gisbertz) and Lambrusco (Entertainer by Total Touch stb-ext pref prest by Lux, breeder Pieter Keunen), both ridden by Pieter Keunen, as well as Lay Out (Verdi by Vallei Roos elite prest PROK by Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve, breeder J.. J. Ilbrink and J.H. Ilbrink-Lueks from Geesteren) under Kristian Houwen. They are thus assured of a place in the final.

Five-year-olds
After finishing the second part of the semifinals for the five year olds, the 40 horses that will participate in the final have been announced. Today 26 duos stayed clear.
The best 40 combinations of the first two days are qualified for the final tomorrow, all others can start in the small final. After 61 combinations were clear in the 1.20 m course in the sand arena yesterday, 26 managed to finish without penalties on the beautiful grass footing today. Not only the 18 double clears but also 22 combinations with four penalty points can therefore start in the final, where everyone starts with a clean slate.
Among the finalists are five KWPN-approved stallions. Just like yesterday, Mindset ES (Aganix du Seigneur by Hosanne ES keur sport-spr pref by Kannan, f/g Egbert Schep) under Jarno van Erp stayed clear. Mees van de Watermolen (Vannan by Holinda ster by Carambole), bred by Jan Greve and ridden by Renske Kroeze, also advanced to the final. Just like Maximus VDL (Zirocco Blue VDL by Daloma elite IBOP-spr sport-spr PROK by Verdi, f/g Henk Grol from Muntendam) under Cristel Kalf, Stargos VDL (Stakkato Gold by Estella by Conthargos, breeder W. Winkeler) and Horizontal (Casall by Mel d'Argences by Quick Star, f/g Jan Tops from Valkenswaard). The best result of today was achieved by Johan Bergs with Jos Althuyzen's keur EPTM mare Mariekske A (Edinburgh out of On Wings keur prest by Peter Pan). She already passed the mare test with 80 points.

Seven-year-olds
Just like yesterday, the seven-year-olds rode their second part in the impressive grass arena in Valkenswaard. The best 25, including 11 double jumpers, were placed for the final.
More than 50 seven year olds started in this second part of the KWPN championship for the Blom Cup, which is again organized at 1.40m level. The best 25 of these may start in the final, including several offspring of Eldorado van de Zeshoek (2), Zirocco Blue VDL (2) and Baltic VDL (2). The KWPN approved stallion Kensington ES (Cornet Obolensky out of Athletin by For Pleasure, f/g Egbert Schep) delivered just like yesterday a convincing clear round with Caroline Müller and qualified easily for the final.

Nelson (by Highway M TN) wins semi final Blom Cup four-year-olds
Judges Tal Milstein and Marcel Beukers judged over 60 four year old show jumpers in the semi finals of the Blom Cup today. Under Renee de Weert, Nelson (by Highway M TN) achieved the best result.
The highest points in this semi-final went to the KWPN-approved stallion Neymar VDL (Thunder van de Zuuthoeve by Darco's Rose by Darco) from breeder VDL Stud, who won earlier this month with Suzanne Tepper in the young horses in Tolbert. He now got an 8.7 for both jumping and going between the fences, but an unfortunate fault dropped him to seventh position. "This horse jumped with a lot of power and is very easy to ride. He is a bit cheeky, but that is only natural in view of his pedigree. That will come in handy in the future," said Tal Milstein.
With a score of 8.5 and 8.6, Nelson (Highway M TN out of Fanory elite EPTM-spr pref PROK by Cardento, breeder family Kuipers from Hengelo) under Renee de Weert emerged as the winner. The stable owner of Henk van den Broek has only one week under the saddle, after she successfully presented this horse of Klaas Mostert in the VSN Finale earlier this year. "This is really a fantastic horse. Every jump is the same, he has a good balance, a lot of power in his canter and he jumps with a lot of power. He was convincing on all fronts!" The second placed Notate JDV (Jacadello out of Hantate stb-ext PROK by Lamm de Fetan, breeder Jean Dresen from Valkensburg) is also a very complete show jumper. Under Stephanie Whitworth this talent of Stal Hendrix jumped twice an 8.5. "This is a mare with a lot of quality. She is a bit more on the forehand in terms of balance but can jump back surprisingly well, is sharp, rides very well and showed good instinct." Third-placed Catch daughter Lourdes scored 8.2 and 8.5 under Sanna Bergs-Olsson. This mare by Marco Zeekaf stood out with her light-footedness, good rideability and athletic ability.
The best 25 are qualified for the final, which is scheduled for tomorrow at 08.30 hours.

(Source: kwpn.nl - Photo: Digishots)